The new Porsche 911 is here – full details
News lash: Porsche’s released a new 911, the eighth generation of its talismanic sports car. For all its 21st century tech it’s still a 911 – and a very handsome one at that.
OLIVER BLUME, Porsche CEO, is addressing the assembled media at the Los Angeles Auto Show. ‘Continuity doesn’t mean stagnation,’ he says, delivering a polite middle finger to accusations of same-again laziness on Porsche’s business-as-mostly-usual 911 evolution. And he has a point. For while you might still need a little help telling this one apart from the 991-generation car, the technology beneath the 992’s skin would suggest Stuttgart’s hardly been dragging its heels.
Many will welcome the familiar Coke-bottle shape, now with a front end 45mm wider than before. Porsche has also confirmed that the rear arches will remain the same width across all models, so there won’t be a wider-track version as used for the likes of the Turbo and GT2/GT3 in the past.
The rear aspect has made the most progress, having sprouted a central high-intensity brake light amid the vertical slatted vents, above a full-width strip light, and there’s a variable-height spoiler (in line with other current Porsches).
The door handles now slide out electronically, Land Rover-style – not just for better aerodynamics, but also because it’s ‘a thing’ now, apparently.
Welcome changes inside include the 10.9in infotainment screen lifted from the Panamera, Cayenne and refreshed Macan. Amortise those costs! It’s always connected for swarm data-based live mapping, and it’s not the only screen; Porsche fans everywhere will be relieved to still see the analogue central revcounter, but the dials flanking it have been replaced by screens offering more versatility – much like the Cayenne and Panamera. This also allows infrared night vision cameras to project a live feed – nothing new, but a burgeoning tech nice-tohave. Adaptive cruise with traffic functions and autonomous emergency assistance also features on the equipment list.
Evolutionary it might be but the new 911 was hands-down the most important new reveal of the show. Porsche’s conference, split off from every other brand in its own separate (and compact) hall, was limited in space and therefore attendance numbers.
Why an LA reveal in the first place? Detlev von Platen, Porsche’s head of sales and marketing: ‘No other country comes close to the US in terms of 911 sales. It should come as no surprise that we sell more 911s right here in California than in any other state.’4
Cabin changes include the 10.9-inch screen lifted from the Panamera
Despite the 991 generation coming to an end, appetite is still huge for the 70-year-old brand’s icon. ‘In the seventh and final year of the 991, sales are not declining but increasing – up nine per cent through to October,’ adds von Platen.
Then, the big moment: reserved appreciation in the form of polite applause greets Blume as he introduces the new car. If the response is a little lukewarm that’s probably less about the new car failing to blow socks off and more about the fact that most of the audience – media and employees – saw it the evening before at a preview event.
Thankfully, the new 911’s powertrain remains reassuringly familiar. The Carrera S and 4S models unveiled at LA still use a 3.0-litre turbocharged flat-six, just like the 991.2. Power is up to 444bhp – 30bhp more than before, and as powerful as the outgoing GTS – while the 0-62mph launch sprints have been trimmed by 0.4sec (3.7sec for Carrera S and 3.6sec for 4S), cut by another 0.2sec if you go for the Sport Chrono pack complete with launch control.
Power is sent to the rear wheels via a new eight-speed PDK ’box, which, coupled with compulsory petrol engine particulate filters and NOx reduction gadgets, is designed to meet stringent RDE emissions test. ‘Of course, later next year, our traditional manual will be available as well,’ says Blume.
A new Porsche Impact app will track your CO2 output and let you know how much you’d need to pay in order to offset it, through projects like forest conservation and wind, solar and hydro power. New noise regs mean a quieter exhaust on start-up.
Want one? A Carrera S PDK will be yours for £93,110, with the all-wheel-drive model coming in at £98,418. They, of course, will not be the only 911 flavours; the first cabriolets are due in January, lower-powered Carrera variants (with a power boost from 365bhp to 395bhp) will arrive in April and the Turbo and more hardcore Carrera GTS are due in September – most likely debuting at the 2019 Frankfurt motor show. The Turbo will still be one of the loftier 911s, with output expected to nudge 610bhp. There is, of course, going to be a GT3 variant, too, which has already been spotted tested in the wild, complete with race-spec wing.
But that’s not all; when the 992 gets its midlife facelift, one of the all-new variants will be a plug-in hybrid. When that arrives, it will combine the familiar 3.0-litre flat-six with a 93lb ft electric motor and 10.8 kWh battery, all-wheel drive and a newfound fascination with torque – 560lb ft of the stuff, combined with 485bhp.
‘Porsche embraces the current shift towards hybrids and electrification, of course, but our 911 shows that stability and continuity are principles for more than just electric mobility’, says CEO Blume.
And for that we’re grateful.